Emma Strub, shown on the University of Minneosta campus in Minneapolis, Minnesota, enjoys taking self portraits, or selfies, with her cell phone and sharing them with friends. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Minneapolis Star Tribune/MCT)

We always know change is coming and news will be made, but seriously, could any of us have known when the first fresh moments of the year wafted in shortly past that magical hour on Jan. 1, 2013, that there would be quite so much ... much?

Well, there was, and without further ado, here are 50 thing we know now that we didn't around this same time last year.

We didn't know that ...

1 History would repeat itself with a shutdown of the federal government that resulted in ... nothing, except perhaps our increased disillusionment with our elected leaders.

FILE - In this Aug. 25, 2013 file photo, Miley Cyrus performs at the MTV Video Music Awards at the Barclays Center in New York. Her infamous performance on the MTV Video Music Awards, showed her twerking her way in pop culture history in a teddy bear leotard that segues to a skimpy nude bikini. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)
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Charles Sykes
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2 It wouldn't be the Republicans to stop Obamacare; it would be lousy software.

3 BART workers would go on strike, and Bay Area residents would want to tie union members and management to the tracks.

4 We'd learn that the NSA has been eavesdropping on our phone calls and social media posts, plus doing a whole lot of spying and prying, thanks to Edward Snowden, who dropped the bombshell and then went looking for refuge anywhere not in the United States.

5 The phrase "Boston Strong" could evoke such emotion. It was coined after two brothers set off bombs at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

6 Television would become obsessed by fairy tales.

7 Hannah Montana would take an unfortunate turn onto the Jersey Turnpike and have the world -- including our grandparents -- talking about "twerking."

8 Selfies, the act of taking your own photo with your smartphone and posting it on social media, would become the latest self-absorption.

9 Pope Benedict would take early retirement and his replacement, Pope Francis, left, would be such a breath of fresh air that even atheists would sing his praises.

10 There would be some good transportation news with opening a fourth bore through the Caldecott Tunnel and the christening of a new Bay Bridge, bad bolts notwithstanding.

11 Actress Jodie Foster and Olympic gold medalist skater Brian Boitano would finally end the speculation about their choices of romantic partners, and nobody was much surprised by either.

12 State after state would begin to allow same-sex marriage after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to stop them.

15 The towering "Duck Dynasty" would start to look a little like the Romanov Dynasty, threatening to topple after patriarch Phil Robertson took the duck call from his lips to denounce homosexuality and wax nostalgic about "Song of the South."

16 Celebrity chef Paula Deen would lose her job, her sponsorships and much of her audience after admitting in a deposition that she had, long ago, used the N-word.

19 Lance Armstrong would finally come clean, admitting to Oprah that he used performance-enhancing drugs to win the Tour de France and other races, resulting in landfills overflowing with yellow "Live Strong" bracelets.

22 Collegiate football player Manti Te'o would learn that his dead girlfriend was neither dead nor a girl nor a friend.

23 The Super Bowl would be the Harbaugh Bowl, with 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, left, facing brother John's team, the Ravens, in a squeaker that left the Niners in the dark.

24 President Barack Obama would be sworn in for a second term, but it was first lady Michelle Obama's inaugural luncheon eye-roll, directed at Speaker of the House John Boehner, that had tongues wagging.

25 We'd forget all about doing it Gangnam Style in favor of the Harlem Shake.

26 We'd suddenly realize that the 10th anniversary of the Iraq War, the 30th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, and the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's assassination would all be coming at us in the same year.

29 Three women, missing for a decade, would be discovered alive in a Cleveland house where they had been imprisoned and abused. Their captor, Ariel Castro, later would be convicted on multiple counts, but would die in prison of self-administered strangulation.

FILE - This July 15, 2013 file photo shows Twinkies in Gilbert, Ariz. It was a year of culinary comebacks. Wonder bread, Twinkies and a host of other Hostess Brands goodies were relaunched by new owners after disappearing in 2012 when the company went out of business. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)
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Matt York
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20 We'd fall in love with Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, who gave us his take on David Bowie's classic "Space Oddity," complete with stunning visuals and his guitar playing, from the International Space Station.

21 Justin Timberlake would be hot again, Brittany Spears would be talented again, and Justin Bieber would be neither of those things, and Anne Frank wouldn't have been a Belieber.

27 The IRS would get a little too intrusive by targeting right-wing, anti-abortion and tea party groups, much to the delight of tax dodgers everywhere, who figured it was less attention on them.

28 The Boy Scouts of America would drop its ban on gay Scouts, but would still refuse gay Scout leaders.

32 Thousands would die and thousands more be left with nothing, after a horrific typhoon named Haiyan swept across the Philippines and Vietnam.

33 Actress Angelina Jolie would make a stunning revelation that because she carries a gene that increases her chance of breast cancer, she had undergone a double mastectomy.

34 Our long national nightmare would come to a close when Twinkies returned to store shelves.

35 We would never go back to the "Blue Bayou" someday after learning that Linda Ronstadt's singing voice has been silenced by Parkinson's disease.

36 A jet carrying more than 300 people would crash at San Francisco International Airport, and would lead to the deaths of three people.

39 George Zimmerman would be acquitted of murdering Trayvon Martin in a case of neighborhood watch gone wrong.

42 "Sharknado," a made-for-TV movie by Antioch's own Anthony Ferrante, would have otherwise intelligent people discussing the possibilities of a tornado dropping sharks on unsuspecting B-list actors.

40 U.S. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning would be found not guilty of the most serious charge against him -- aiding the enemy -- for giving classified secrets to WikiLeaks. He would be found guilty of several other charges, however.

41 Mayors could be so sleazy, from former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner's wandering eyes and hands to Toronto Mayor Rob Ford's drug-and-alcohol-fueled crazies.

43 We'd learn that football is a rough sport not only on the field but in the locker room, as second-year lineman Jonathan Martin, a Stanford grad, would leave the Miami Dolphins and seek counseling for what he said was bullying at the hands of veteran offensive lineman Richie Incognito.

37 Jesse Jackson Jr. would be spending 30 months in jail after pleading guilty to diverting more than $750,000 in campaign funds to luxury items for himself and his wife.

38 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry would make a sarcastic suggestion that Syria avoid an invasion by voluntarily turning over its chemical weapons arsenal, and the country would take him up on it.

44 Swimmer Diana Nyad, 64, would swim into history while showing that age doesn't have to matter as she swam from Cuba to Florida in about 53 hours.

45 UC Berkeley would be rocked twice, once by an explosion caused by copper thieves, and then by its football team's dismal showing.

46 "Going Full Vitter," meaning forcing all elected government officials, staff and administrative heads to pay for their own health insurance without any federal subsidies, would have our elected leaders worrying, which is not a bad thing, as far as we're concerned.

47 Despite a lot of talk and debate, gun control would remain little more than something to argue about.

18 Riding in a limo would seem a lot less cool after two limos caught fire, one with tragic results.

13 The U.S. Postal Service would fail to deliver on its promise to stop home delivery on Saturdays.

14 We'd learn, perhaps against our will, what the fox says.

48 A new heir to the British throne, George, would arrive, showing royals Prince William and Kate to be quite the normal, average parents.

49 A new heir to the well-oiled Kardashian publicity juggernaut would arrive, North West, showing that Kim and Kanye are far from normal, average parents.

31 Virtual farmers would abandon their cyber fields to play Candy Crush.

17 A grumpy faced cat would make its way into so many Internet posts and photos.